


Treasured Heart

by tardis19



Category: Twilight Series - All Media Types
Genre: Drama, F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-22
Updated: 2017-02-04
Packaged: 2018-09-19 06:01:20
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,919
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9421682
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tardis19/pseuds/tardis19
Summary: The last time they met, they were both left with scars.  Fifteen years later, they find themselves working together to find an elusive treasure.  Murder, mystery, and romance ensue.





	1. Chapter 1

Bella – 2001

“Bells!” Dad called, and I looked up from the book I was reading on the couch and out the open back door. “Come out here for a sec!”

Heaving a sigh, I got up after placing my bookmark in my book and made my way outside and toward the dock where my dad was standing with a man around his own age. I grinned when I saw it was Carlisle Cullen, my dad’s old college roommate. Dad and Carlisle tended to go on sailing adventures once a year, but I was usually at my mom’s when they went, so I hadn’t seen Carlisle in ages.

I rushed over to them and gave Carlisle a quick hug, not even realizing that there was another person beside him. 

“You remember my son, Edward,” Carlisle said, and I did a double take because the tall, gorgeous man beside Carlisle was nothing like the Edward I remembered. Granted, I hadn’t seen Edward in about five years, but he’d definitely grown up. He was even cuter than Justin Timberlake, and that was saying something because Justin was my ultimate crush and the cutest boy I’d ever seen until now.

“Hey,” Edward said with a nod, and I felt the blush on my cheeks brighten. 

“Why don’t you show Edward around while Carlisle and I talk?” Dad suggested, and I wanted to kill him. I was awkward enough around boys that I knew, so I wasn’t sure I’d even be able to talk to Edward without drooling or making a fool of myself.

“Okay, um, follow me,” I said, leading Edward toward the back of the house.

“So, uh, this is the living room,” I began after we walked in the back door, and I quickly gave Edward a tour of the house, stumbling over my words and blushing the whole time.

Eventually, I led him back out to the porch where we sat in awkward silence, watching as our dads talked to each other.

“Do you dive?” he asked me after a few minutes, and I nodded my head.

“Yep. Dad taught me at an early age. He’s a professor of archeology, but his true love is marine treasure hunting, so he got me diving as soon as I was able to swim. Do you dive?”

He nodded his head as well. “Yeah, but it’s not really my thing.”

“So, why are you guys here?”

He rolled his eyes as he told me that his dad had found some information on a shipwreck that his dad and mine had been obsessed with in their younger years.

My interest was immediately peaked. I loved doing research about shipwrecks, and it was even more cool getting to dive down and see the remains of them.

“Which ship?” I asked him.

“The Sirène,” he said, and my jaw dropped. 

“No way! Your dad found it?”

Edward shrugged a shoulder.

“He thinks he has.”

“That’s so cool,” I said, and it to me it was, but Edward didn’t seem all that interested. 

“I guess,” he said, crossing his arms over his chest and staring at his dad.

“The Sirène went missing in the 1700’s from France. Supposedly, it was on its way back to France from the British Virgin Islands. Rumor has it that there was a heart shaped brooch in its coffers that is known as the Treasured Heart. The heart is a huge ruby with emeralds and dia—“

“Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know,” he said, with an eye roll. “I’ve heard it all before.”

“You don’t believe it?”

“It’s a rumor, kid. You can’t believe everything you hear,” he said in a harsh tone, and I shrunk back in my chair, letting out a huff. I was sixteen, not six, and I wasn’t stupid.

“Whatever,” I muttered before picking up one of the old magazines that dad had left lying on the outdoor table, and I began to read about the best fishing spots in the southern United States, doing my best to ignore the cute jerk next to me.

I looked up from the magazine when my dad and Mr. Cullen walked over to us, laughing with huge smiles on their faces.

“Are you sure you don’t want to stay here tonight, Carlisle?” Dad asked, and Mr. Cullen shook his head.

“Nah, we’ve got the boat,” he said before shaking my dad’s hand and motioning for his son to join him.

With a wave my way, I watched as Edward and his dad walked away, and I turned to look at my dad.

“What’s going on, Dad? Edward mentioned that his dad found the Sirène.”

Dad nodded as he informed me that Carlisle was pretty sure he’d found the ship’s location down near the British Virgin Islands, and he had invited Dad to join him.

“If you’re going, I’m going,” I told him, arms crossed over my chest. There was no way I was going to miss out on this.

“Bells,” Dad began with a sigh. “Your mother is expecting you for the summer.”

I let out an ugly snort at his words. “Oh, please. She’ll be thrilled not to have me around. Besides, she’s got a new boyfriend, and I’m sure she’ll want to spend all her time with him.”

Dad let out a sigh as he stared at me before telling me that I would had to call my mother and let her know I didn’t want to visit her in Phoenix.

“Fine,” I agreed, rushing inside to do just that.

The conversation with my mother went exactly as I expected. She did her best to sound upset and put off that I didn’t want to visit her, but there was a note of relief in her voice as well.

“Sorry, Mom. I’m sure I’ll be back before the summer is over, and I’ll spend a week with you then if that’s okay?”

Mom agreed, and I let out a whoop after I hung up the phone before rushing to tell Dad that Mom was cool with me not visiting.

Three days later, Dad and I were boarding Breaking Dawn, the boat, well yacht really, owned by Carlisle. And boy, was it a beauty. It was a hundred foot yacht, with four large staterooms, four and a half bathrooms, a huge living room, kitchen, and large decks. 

Esme, Edward’s mom, greeted me on the deck with a hug, which I returned, before she told Edward to show him where I’d be staying, and he begrudgingly agreed. 

As I followed him down the stairs below deck, I noticed that he had a scowl on his face.

“Why didn’t you just stay at home?” I asked him as he showed me to the cabin I’d be staying in.

“My folks want me here, so here I am,” he said bitterly, and I rolled my eyes at his surly tone. It sounded like he’d rather be anywhere else than here, and I figured he’d rather spend his summer on a beach somewhere, partying with other frat boys because there was no way that Edward Cullen wasn’t a frat boy. 

I could barely contain my irritated sigh as he pointed to the room the that was mine. I dropped my bag on the bed before making my way back to the deck where my dad was talking with Edward’s parents.

“Are you hungry, Bella?” Esme asked, and I shook my head.

“I’m good, thanks,” I told her before making my way toward a deck chair and pulling my discman out of my pocket. Avril Lavigne’s newest album had just come out, and I’d been listening to it on repeat for days, and I had a feeling I was going to need angry girl music to get me through the next seven days.  
.................................................  
Three days into our trip, I was catching some sun on the deck with my headphones on when I heard Carlisle tell Edward that he needed to be nicer to me, and I scowled. I didn’t need anyone to fight my battles for me, and I was silently cursing my dad. 

Edward had been distantly polite to me, sometimes even rude, so I had mentioned it to my dad. Obviously, had said something to Carlisle, and now, Edward was going to think that I couldn’t stand up for myself and that I needed my daddy to fight my battles for me. Not that I cared what he thought. He was just a selfish college jerk. One that I wasn’t remotely crushing on at all.

I did my best to ignore Edward and his dad talking, but I found myself pausing my CD so I could hear what they were saying.

“Seriously? I haven’t been mean to her at all,” he said, crossing his arms over his chest, and I saw him shoot a glare my way out of the corner of my eye.

“I’m not saying that you’ve been mean to her, but you’ve been a bit dismissive,” Carlisle said, holding up a hand when Edward went to speak. By now, I was totally watching them but trying to pretend that I wasn’t.

“Just try to get to know her. We’re all on this boat for the next couple of months. Everyone needs to get along.”

“Fine,” Edward growled before mumbling that he didn’t have time to babysit any kids, and I glared at him.

As if he’d felt my eyes on him, he turned to look at me, and I stared right back. With a shake of his head, he turned around and made his way toward the stairs that led down below.

It was going to be a long freaking trip, and I was ready to just get to where we were going so that I could get off this yacht and get some space from The Jerk, as I was now calling him.  
……………………………..  
“How you holding up, kiddo?” Dad asked me on our fifth day at sea, and I shrugged a shoulder. 

“I’m doing okay,” I told him, but Dad wasn’t buying that for a second. 

“Uh huh,” he said as he sat down across from me in the stateroom I was using for the trip. “This is the longest you’ve been at sea at one time, and we still have a couple of days to go.”

“I’m just ready to get there,” I said with a sigh as I flopped down on my back on the bed and stared up at the ceiling. 

“Edward seems to be acting nicer,” Dad commented, and I rolled my eyes because it was all an act that Edward was putting on. Whenever the adults were around, Edward acted nice and pretended to be interested in what I had to say, but as soon as they were out of hearing range, he went back to ignoring me.

“Yep,” I replied.

“Are you regretting spending the summer with me?” Dad asked, and I sat up and shook my head.

“No way. I can’t wait to get into the water and dive! I mean, how cool would it be if we really found the Treasured Heart? That would be freaking insane!”

Dad let out a laugh before agreeing with me.

He and Carlisle had stayed up late most of the nights since we’d left, trying to find the most accurate place to dive once we reached the Virgin Island Shelf near Jost Van Dyke Island in the British Virgin Islands.

Dad and I sat around talking for a while, something we hadn’t done much of on this trip, and before long, I was yawning and trying to keep my eyes open.

“Bed, kiddo. I’ll see you in the morning,” he said, giving me a hug and telling me he loved me.

I was out quickly, lulled to sleep by the motion of the boat, and when I woke up the next morning, I felt better than I had the past couple of days. I could always talk to Dad about things, and he always made everything seem so much better.

I took a quick shower and made my way to the galley where Esme had breakfast sitting on the table. I grabbed some bacon and eggs, along with a slice of toast, and spent the next twenty minutes, eating and talking with her.

Esme was so nice and so easy to get along with, and she was the perfect epitome of a mom. She was incredibly sweet and loving, and I wished my mother was more like her. My mother was flighty and forgetful, barely remembering to pay her bills on time or remembering when my birthday was.

“Are you planning on college after high school?” Esme asked me as I helped her clean up breakfast.

“Yeah, I want to study maritime archaeology,” I told her before explaining that I’d already picked out some of the colleges I wanted to go visit.

“Most of them are in Florida, so I wouldn’t be too far from home, but there are a few schools in the Pacific Northwest.”

“Sounds like you have it all planned out,” she said with an easy smile, and I shrugged, telling her that it was something I’d been thinking about since junior high.

“I wish Edward was that together,” she confided. “He’s going into his sophomore year, and he has no clue what he wants to study. I realize that he doesn’t have to declare a major just yet, but I hope he finds something that he loves.”

“I’m sure he will,” I told her, but I wasn’t all that sure. I couldn’t picture Edward studying anything at all. Well, nothing of academic importance. I was sure he spent most of his time studying the female form.

Once the kitchen was clean, I made my way up top toward the stern of the ship where the lounge chairs were. I sat down in one and closed my eyes, deciding to soak up the sun, but that didn’t last for long. Dark clouds were rolling in quick, and Dad hollered for me to get inside.

I hated being on a boat during a storm. I loved the ocean, and I loved boats, but I hated being at sea when there was a storm. Storms caused the waves to grow larger and the water to become rougher, making me fear the boat would crash or sink.

I rushed down below deck and into my room, grabbing the life vest in the closet and turning around when I heard footsteps coming down the small hallway.

“You okay?” Edward asked, leaning against the doorjamb, and I noted there was actual concern on his face.

“Storms unnerve me a bit,” I admitted, biting my lower lip and figuring that Edward probably thought I was a giant baby.

“Well, it doesn’t look like it’s going to be a bad one. It seems like the storm is far enough away that we’ll probably only get a few swells with some rain and thunder.”

I hoped he was right, but I flinched when a loud clap of thunder echoed across the sky.

“Why don’t watch a movie or something?” he suggested. “It might help you take your mind off the storm.”

I was game for that, so we made our way to the living room area, and he opened up a cabinet that held all kinds of movies.

“Pick one,” he said, so I wandered over and looked through the shelves before finally settling on one.

“Is Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, okay?” I asked because I loved the Harry Potter books and the first movie.

Edward nodded, so I put the movie in to play and then sat on the opposite end of the couch that he was on. 

As we watched the movie, the storm outside picked up, and I could have sworn there was an electric current in the air. My fingers were itching to reach out and touch Edward, take his hand or run my fingers through his hair, and I had no idea why. Maybe being stuck on this boat for the past six days had finally driven me insane.

All of a sudden, a large crash of thunder clashed nearby causing me to jump. I felt a warm hand on my shoulder and looked over at Edward, my eyes wide with worry and a slight bit of panic. 

“We’re fine,” he said, and I nodded my head, desperately hoping that was true as the boat began to rock harder and the waves in the ocean swelled.

“You kids okay?” my dad hollered, and Edward couldn’t remove his hand from my shoulder fast enough.

“We’re fine,” Edward replied before standing up and telling me he was going to go check on his mom, and I was left sitting there, staring after him.

When he didn’t come back after a few minutes, I turned the movie off and made my way toward my room.

I shut the door and climbed onto the bed, laying down and wrapping my arms around one of the pillows.

I was lying there in the dark, listening the waves and the storm outside, wondering why the hell I felt so rejected. It wasn’t like Edward and I were even friends, and I know that he just saw me as an annoying high school girl. Despite all that though, there was still that sharp pain of rejection when he’d yanked his hand off my shoulder like he’d been burned. 

At some point, I must have fallen asleep because I woke up to my dad shaking my shoulder.

“What?” I asked, my eyes still closed.

“Storms over,” Dad said, and I opened my eyes and looked at him. “Carlisle’s cooked up some dinner if you’re hungry.”

I told him I’d be up in a few minutes, and once he was gone, I used the bathroom and washed my face. I took a few deep breaths, bracing myself to see Edward, and made my way to the galley.

Dad and Carlisle kept up a steady stream of conversation, outlining the plan for tomorrow once we arrived at our destination, and I did my best to pay attention. However, most of my time at dinner was spent glancing over at Edward who had yet to look my way, or so it seemed.

“Let’s turn in early tonight,” Carlisle suggested. “We’re going to have a big day tomorrow.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all so much for reading and reviewing! I'm so glad that you all enjoyed the first chapter!   
> I will let you know that I know nothing about diving, and I've done quite a bit of research about it as well as maritime archaeology, so any and all errors regarding those subjects are mine. And, I may take a few creative liberties along the way, but nothing too outrageous.   
> A huge shout out to my beta, Heather, for her awesome beta skills.

……………………Chapter 2……………………..  
At quarter to six the following morning, Dad knocked on my door, letting me know that we had arrived and to wake up.

Immediately, I got out of bed and raced through my morning rituals of showering and brushing my teeth. 

I put on my bathing suit before putting on a pair of cotton shorts and a tank top and then slipped my feet into a pair of sandals.

By the time I made it to onto the deck, my dad and Carlisle had gotten all of the diving equipment prepped and ready to go, and my excitement kicked in.

I couldn’t wait to get in the water and begin the search for the Sirene and the Treasured Heart. Oh, I knew there was a very slim chance we’d actually find it, but that didn’t diminish my excitement in the slightest.

Edward, on the other hand, looked bored to death at the talk going on around him.

“Are you going with?” I asked him, and he shook his head before telling me he was going to stay on the boat with his mom.

Thirty minutes later, Carlisle, Dad, and I were in the water, armed with dive lights and knives. Carlisle also had a small underwater metal detector, so we were following his lead.

The further down we dived, the more alive the ocean became. There were fish of all shapes, sizes, and colors, swimming about, and I took a moment to take it all in. Seeing the marine life was one of my favorite things about diving, and I took a few pictures with the underwater camera attached to the belt around my waist.

Carlisle’s voice came through our diver communication units, and he told us to spread out and look around for anything that might indicate we were in the right area. 

Dad warned me not to go so far that he couldn’t see me, and I gave him a thumbs up because he said the same thing every time we went on a dive.

I moved a few feet away and spotted something under the sand. Gently, I waved my hand a few inches above the sand to clear it off only to reveal a rock underneath. 

For forty minutes, I surveyed the area I’d designated mine, but I didn’t find anything beyond a few glass bottles, some rocks, and some seashells. Some of which I put in a small bag that I had with me.

“I’ve got nothing over here,” I said over the communication unit.

“Same,” came Dad and Carlisle’s replies before Carlisle suggested we take a break for a few hours and try again later.

Once we were back on the boat, Dad and Carlisle went over to the map that was located just inside the wheelhouse. The map was pinned to the wall and had divided into different grids. Once we searched a grid area, they would mark it off, so we wouldn’t waste our time searching the same location twice. If anything was found, it was also marked on the grid. 

Stripping out of my dive gear, I rinsed off quickly in the small outdoor shower that was on the starboard side before drying off and walking back toward the bag I’d set down.

“What did you find, Bells?” Dad asked me, and I grinned when I pulled out the two glass bottles I’d found.

“For my collection,” I explained. Dad had his own collection of coins and pottery, so he wasn’t about to judge my bottle collection.

“Is there a sink I can use to clean these off?” I asked Esme, holding up the two bottles.

“Of course,” she said, telling me I could use the kitchen sink, and I beamed.

With fresh water, some powdered dishwashing detergent I’d packed, and a little elbow grease, I had the first bottle cleaned and set it on a towel to dry. 

I did the same with the second bottle, and once I had them both dry, I took them out to the deck to show my dad.

My paternal grandfather had owned an antique store, so my dad had grown up around antiques. He was my go-to source for anything I found on my dives. 

“Check it out, Dad! It says Webb Double Soda on it,” I said, handing him the first bottle.

Dad took it and examined it from top to bottom, turning it over in his hands.

“I’d date it between 1850 and 1870. It was used to hold carbonated water. It’s not worth much. Forty bucks maybe,” Dad said, but I didn’t care about the monetary value. 

“And the second one?” I asked, handing over the other clear bottle with the words Atwood’s Jaundice Bitter stamped on it.

Dad said it was probably from around the same time period, maybe as late as the 1880’s, and again, not worth much. 

“Well, at least one of us found some treasure,” Carlisle said with a grin my way, and I smiled back at him. 

After we ate a lunch of grilled cheese and let our food settle, Dad, Carlisle, and I went back in the water. I’d learned that Esme hated diving, and Edward wasn’t all that fond of it either which was why neither of them were going with us. 

We spent another hour in the water, coming back empty handed. That wasn’t all that unusual, considering we didn’t have the actual coordinates of where the shipwreck was located. All we had were rumors and speculation.  
……………….  
Days passed without us finding anything, but my dad and Carlisle weren’t discouraged at all. We’d taken a day to go into the closest port, refuel, and get groceries and supplies. Esme and I had done a bit of sightseeing as well, not that there was a ton to see, but it was nice to be off the boat.

“Oh, Charlie, Marcus said he’d be here in two days to help,” Carlisle said as we all walked back to the port where the boat was docked.

“Sounds good,” Dad said, but there was something in his voice that told me he wasn’t all that thrilled about this Marcus guy. 

“So, who’s Marcus?” I asked later that night as Dad and I were chilling on the deck, looking at the stars.

“And old friend from college. He’s into treasure hunting as well, but unlike us, he’s willing to do anything to find what he wants.”

“Oh,” I said quietly. “So, he does illegal things?”

“Yes. Carlisle and I did a few dives with him before both you or Edward were born, and we swore we’d never work with him again after the crap that he pulled.”

“What did he do?”

Dad shook his head. “Let’s just say that I spent a couple days in jail and leave it at that. I’m extremely nervous that Carlisle is willing to work with him again, but I trust Carlisle. I always have, and I always will.”

I nodded my head. 

“I trust him, too. 

 

……………………  
Two days later, Marcus boarded The Breaking Dawn, and I instantly disliked him. I wasn’t alone.

“I don’t trust him,” Edward said, leaning against the railing next to me as we looked over to where the grownups were talking.

“Me neither,” I said as I shot a glare at Marcus. He made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up, and I got a bad vibe from him.

“Dad says that this Marcus guy has done illegal things,” I whispered to Edward, and his eyebrows shot up and a frown formed on his face.

“I don’t know why my dad would call this guy in then,” he said, and I told him my dad said it was because Marcus knowing something about the Sirène.

“I don’t like it,” he said with a scowl before shoving away from the railing and going toward the stairs leading to the galley.

I agreed with him one hundred percent.  
…........................  
Two days later, we had sailed the boat fifty miles north of where we’d been in order to search a new grid area, all of which had been Mr. Caius’s idea. It wasn’t that it was a bad idea, but it seemed that Mr. Caius was trying to take over the exploration, and that made me uncomfortable.

“Let’s gear up,” Dad said, and I went to grab my dive suit but was interrupted by Mr. Caius.

“Where do you think you’re going?” he asked me, and I jumped at the sound of his voice because I hadn’t realized that he’d followed me.

“To get my dive suit,” I said, raising my chin up and staring at him.

“You’re not going on this dive.”

“Yes, I am,” I told him, crossing my arms over my chest. Normally, I avoided confrontation and tended to do what I was told, but I wasn’t going to let this smarmy guy tell me I couldn’t go on this dive. 

“No, you’re not,” he reiterated.

“Yes, I am,” I repeated. “You don’t get decide what dives I go on. You’re not my boss, you’re not my father, and you’re not in charge of this dive!”

With those final words, I grabbed my dive suit off the railing where I’d left it and shoved my way past him, fuming. How dare that jerk try and tell me I couldn’t go on a dive.

Seething, I made my way below deck toward my dad’s room where I pounded on the door.

“What’s wrong?” Dad asked moments later as he opened the door, and I burst in and slammed the door shut behind me.

“Mr. Caius,” I sneered, “informed me that I’m not allowed to go on this dive. I mean who the hell does this guy think he is, telling me what dives I can and can’t go on.”

Dad’s eyes narrowed and darkened, and his jaw clenched. He was pissed, and my dad didn’t often get pissed.

“Don’t worry about him. You’re going on the dive,” Dad said, and I nodded my head, but I had a feeling Dad was going to be having a talk with Mr. Caius and set him straight. 

“Go on, and get changed,” Dad said, and I went to my room to do just that.

A few minutes later, I was up on deck and about to make my way over to the dive deck when a hand grabbed my arm and pulled me back.

“Quiet,” Edward’s voice whispered in my ear and goosebumps broke out along my skin at the feel of his breath on me.

“What?” I whispered back, and he told me to listen.

“You aren’t in charge of this dive operation, Marcus,” I heard my dad say. “You have no right to be telling my daughter she can’t go on a dive.”

“She’s a child who has no business, searching for artifacts,” I heard Mr. Caius say in a pompous tone.

“She’s an accomplished diver who has been diving since she was little. She’s logged more hours than the average diver, and she knows what to do and what not to do,” Dad argued.

“She’s not going,” Caius said, again.

“My dive, my call,” Carlisle said, speaking up. “If Bella wants to go, she can. We need all the help we can get. Not only do I trust Charlie when he tells me that Bella knows what she’s doing, but, she’s also proven herself over on this trip as well.

Damn straight! I knew what I was doing. I’d probably logged more diving hours than that asshat who was trying to tell me I couldn’t dive. 

“Why doesn’t he want me to go?” I whispered to Edward. He shrugged a shoulder but told me he found it strange and a bit suspicious.

“Yeah, me too. What does your mom think of him?” I asked because I’d barely seen Esme since Caius had boarded the boat.

“She hates him,” he replied. “Which is why she’s staying out of the way.”

I didn’t blame her, but I felt bad for her. Esme seemed to be spending most of her time below deck, and that didn’t seem fair. The views from the deck were gorgeous, the weather was perfect, and I hated she felt she had to hide out in order to be comfortable.

“She shouldn’t have to hide away,” I muttered.

“I think she’s limiting her time around him because she’ll hit him otherwise,” Edward said with a snicker, and I looked at him with disbelief.

“Oh, yeah,” he said with a nod. “My mom’s got one hell of a right hook. You do not fuck with Esme Cullen.”

Wow. I couldn’t picture Esme, who was always dressed to perfection, being capable of messing someone up. Just went to show that you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover.

Just then, my dad called for me, and Edward nudged me toward them.

“Mom and I will be monitoring everything on the communication units and on the video screen,” he said, and I felt better knowing that they had my back. I hadn’t been this nervous about going on a dive since I’d first started, but having to dive with Mr. Caius and knowing he was going to be most likely scrutinizing everything I did, had me unnerved.

“Thanks,” I said, and he nodded. It seemed that things between Edward and I had changed since his abrupt behavior the night of the storm. We’d been awkward around each other for the past couple of days, but now, it seemed as if we were united in our distrust of Marcus Caius.

As soon as I reached Dad, I gave his hand a squeeze and told him thanks for standing up for me, but Dad just shook his head as he told me no thanks was needed. Carlisle said the same thing. 

I looked over all the gear, doing checks on the air tanks and making sure everything was good to go. I heard Caius say that he’d already checked them, but I wasn’t about to take the word of some stranger, especially one I didn’t trust.

With a thumbs up to Dad and Carlisle, I began to put on my gear and had Dad it once more.

“All set. Let’s go,” Carlisle said on the communicator, and one by one, we all flipped into the water and began our descent to the ocean floor.

Once we were near the ocean floor, Carlisle directed each of us to fan out and look for any markers that a ship may have been in the area. It was the same thing we’d been doing for days, and once again, we came back without any evidence.

It went like that for two more weeks. Caius would be on his boat, he’d direct us to a new area, and we’d anchor and search. Rinse and repeat. That’s how it went. Carlisle was becoming increasingly frustrated with Caius, and I wished he’d just send the man on his way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Feel free to leave a review! Next week’s chapter will probably post on Saturday since I’ll be on a plane to Vegas on Sunday.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Thanks for reading and reviewing the last chapter! I love hearing from you all. I'm off to Vegas tomorrow, so you're getting this chapter a little bit early. There's some action (sadly, not of the lemon variety) in this chapter.
> 
> As always, a huge thanks to Heather for helping a girl who hates commas and over uses the word 'that.'

"I've got something!" Dad shouted over the communication unit several days later, and I swam as fast as I could to where he was.

Dad was gently brushing sand away from what looked like something round, and he gently picked one of the items up.

"No way!" I exclaimed as Dad gave me a thumbs up.

"Lead shots," Dad said, and I grinned. We were definitely on the right track it seemed, so we all spread out to look around some more.

I was brushing sand away from just about every spot I searched to see if I could find anything else, but I kept coming up empty, that is, until my hands gently ran over something that felt like metal.

Brushing the sand away, I grinned like a loon when I saw a metal, most likely brass, needle staring up at me. I took my camera out and snapped some pictures before telling my dad that I'd found something as well.

Before the day was over, we brought up one needle, six lead shots, and a handful of iron nails. According to Dad, they all looked to be from the 18th century, further proving we were in the right place.

Needless to say, we were all on a high except for Caius. He didn't seem all that excited or surprised that we'd found some artifacts, and that made me suspicious. I mean, if you were searching for a shipwreck that had haunted your dreams and you had spent years looking for it, wouldn't you be more excited that you were possibly on the right track?

"This is pretty exciting, huh?" I said to Mr. Caius, and he barely looked at me.

"Sure, kid. I'm thrilled," he muttered dryly.

"I can tell. I thought you wanted to find the Sirène?"

"I do."

I rolled my eyes and left him to study the map he was staring at before making my way over to my dad to see how he was doing along with cleaning up the items we'd found.

"How goes it, Dad?" I asked him after seeing a slight frown on his face as he looked over one of the lead shots in his hand.

"Hmm? Oh, it goes, Bells," he said, but his voice was off, and he looked puzzled as he studied the artifact before writing something down in the notebook that he kept.

I decided to leave him to it, telling him goodnight and stopping by the galley to grab a snack to eat in my room before bed.

I was exhausted, and after consuming some peanut butter crackers, I crashed, only to be woken up by shouts of panic a little while later.

Stumbling out of my bed, I raced up the stairs in my pajamas and bare feet to find everyone gathered around someone on the deck. It took a moment for my mind to realize it was my dad lying on his back while Carlisle performed CPR.

"What's going on!?" I cried out, panicked, and Edward grabbed me as I rushed toward my dad.

"C'mon, Charlie!" I heard Carlisle roar as he continued to press down on my dad's chest while Esme took over mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.

My heart dropped, and I fell to my knees, confused and scared, not understanding what was happening nor how it had happened.

"Dad," I whimpered as Edward kept a hold of me, and I clung to him with a fierce grip as I watched Carlisle. He kept doing compressions, but a few moments later, Esme laid a hand on his arm.

"He's gone, Carlisle," I heard Esme say, and a sob ripped out of me as tears poured down my face.

"Fuck!" Carlisle screamed as he rounded on the other man who was standing there, watching.

"What the fuck happened, Marcus?" he demanded to know as he grabbed Marcus and shoved him hard into the railing.

"I don't fucking know, Carlisle!" Caius yelled back. "He wanted to go for a night dive to see if we could find anything else, and I agreed to go with him. We spread out, and I lost sight of him."

"Bullshit! That's such bullshit!" I cried out, getting to my feet with Edward's help. "Dad never dove at night without a light and a couple of glow sticks. Never! He also wouldn't have gone so far that you couldn't see him!"

Esme rushed to my side and wrapped her arms around me, but I was fighting both her and Edward because I knew in my gut that Caius had killed my dad. I knew it, and he was going to fucking pay!

"Well, he did," Caius replied in a calm voice that infuriated me. "By the time I got to him, his tank had run out of air and he was just floating there."

I didn't buy it for a second, and judging by the look on Carlisle's face, he wasn't buying it either.

"Oh, my God, Marcus! You killed him, didn't you?" he asked, horror on his face, and Marcus shook his head.

"I did no such thing, and I won't stand here and listen to these accusations," he declared, shoving Carlisle out of the way and going toward the starboard side where his boat was rafted up next to ours.

Edward let go of me and rushed toward Caius, tackling him and held him down until Carlisle made his way over to them.

"Get the fuck off of me!" Caius snarled, but Edward held on, struggling with Caius while Carlisle went to get some rope.

"Bella, sweetheart? I have to call the coast guard, okay?" Esme said, and I nodded numbly, unable to break my gaze away from my father.

Gently, Esme let go of me, and I rushed over to my dad's side, my body trembling as I stared into his open, unmoving eyes. It had to be a nightmare. That was all. I was having a nightmare, and any minute from now, I was going to wake up.

I could hear the sounds of a struggle going on behind me, but I couldn't look away from my dad, and then I heard a loud bang that sounded like a car backfiring.

I jumped at the noise, and when I turned around, Edward was on the ground, holding onto his side as blood spilled onto his fingers.

"What was that?" Carlisle asked as he came around the corner, freezing when he saw the gun in Caius's hands.

"It wasn't supposed to happen like this," Caius said, waving the gun around, and I flinched as he aimed it at Carlisle.

"What are you talking about?" Carlisle asked, trying to remain calm, but I could see the panic in his eyes as he looked down at his son.

"He figured it out!" Caius shouted, his eyes wild and unfocused. "Charlie figured it out, and I couldn't let him expose me. If he did, I would lose everything. Everything!"

Carlisle took a step forward, and another shot rang out through the air.

"Don't, Carlisle! Don't. I'm leaving, and if you try and stop me, I'll kill every single one of you," Caius warned as he backed up, his gun still aimed at Carlisle, and he climbed over the bow rail and onto his boat. I just stayed where I was, not knowing what to do.

"Esme!" Carlisle hollered as Caius untied his boat from ours. Caius rushed inside to the control room to start the engine.

"Coast guard is on their way," she said, gasping when she saw Edward.

I wasn't sure what to do nor was I sure if I could do anything as shock had definitely set in. I watched as the two of them did what they could to stop the blood pouring from Edward's abdomen.  
...............................

The following days passed by in a blur, and I was still numb. The coast guard had come about thirty minutes after Caius had escaped and airlifted Edward to the nearest hospital. There had been police waiting for us on shore, statements had been given, and a search for Caius had been put into effect.

My dad had been cremated, his ashes being spread over the ocean per his wishes, and my mother was coming to take me home with her.

"Bella?" Carlisle asked, and I refused to meet his gaze. I was mad at him. If he had never come to visit us, asking my dad to go along on this trip, then my dad would still be alive.

He called my name again, but I continued to ignore him. I couldn't speak to him right then because I knew I would say horrible, mean things to him.

"Honey, let me talk to her," I heard Esme say, and I let out a sigh when Carlisle left the room.

"It's okay to be mad at him," she said softly as she sat down beside me on the couch I was sitting on.

"If he hadn't visited, Dad would still be alive," I muttered, my voice bitter and harsh.

"Oh, sweetheart," she said, wrapping an arm around me, and that's all it took for the tears to begin once more.

I felt like I'd been crying for years, and I didn't know how I still had any tears left.

As I cried, she told me Edward was doing fine, but he was going to have a scar to show off to the girls. Then she informed me that my mother would be arriving in the morning to take me back to Phoenix.

"I don't want to go to Phoenix," I told her in a tired voice. "There's no ocean there."

"I know, but you have to go."

And I did. Two days later, I was staring at the front door of my mother's house. She was chattering non-stop about something or other, but I wasn't listening. I didn't want this to be my home. I wanted to go back to Florida, to my house and my bedroom. I wanted to be able to look out my back door and see the water.

"That Cullen woman said she'd pack up your stuff and send it, so you should have some of your stuff within a week or two," Mom said as she unlocked the door.

"Her name's Esme," I replied in a harsh voice because Mom had been rude to Esme from the get go.

"Whatever," Mom said with the wave of her hand. "Why don't you go get settled in, and then we can have dinner with Phil."

"Fantastic," I muttered because I wanted to spend my first night here with my mother's new, younger boyfriend.  
.................................

I spent the next two years in Phoenix, hating it most of the time. I'd gone through a rough transition period and had gotten in with a bad crowd at first. Eventually, I straightened out, and I'd made a couple of friends, had a boyfriend, and had gotten good grades, but I couldn't wait to get out and leave my mother and Phil behind.

I'd slowly letting go of my anger at Carlisle and directing it toward the person who rightly deserved it, Marcus Caius. He still hadn't been caught, but there were warrants out for his arrest, and I hoped like hell he'd gotten eaten by a shark or died a slow, painful death.

"University of West Florida?" Mother asked a few days later as we sat down for dinner, and I stared her down as I nodded my head.

"Yes, they have an excellent maritime archeology program," I told her, and she huffed a little.

"I thought you were over that stupid idea of being a marine archeologist. It didn't turn out so well for your father, now did it?" she asked, and I gaped at her.

"What? It's the truth. Your dad was always running off to play treasure hunter. I just knew one day it would get him killed, and I was right."

"Fuck you!" I snarled as I shoved away from the table, grabbed my acceptance letter to UWF, and stomped up the stairs to my room where I slammed the door shut and locked it.

I blinked back the tears that were threatening to fall as I looked over at a picture of my dad and me that had been taken a few days before he was murdered.

He had always supported my dream to follow in his footsteps, and I wasn't going to let anyone stop me from doing just that.  
.......................

Two weeks after I graduated from high school, I was packing up my meager belongings and placing the boxes in the bed of the old truck I'd bought with money I'd earned from working at the library.

"I think this is a bad idea, Isabella," Mom said.

"So you've said a million times," I replied, irritation in my tone. We'd had this conversation at least once a week for the past few months, and I was tired of hearing it.

"I'm not changing my mind. This is what I want," I explained, yet again.

"Fine," Mom said, throwing her hands in the air. "Go, but I don't want to get any phone calls or emails from you complaining or begging to come home. You're on your own."

"Works for me," I snarled as I went about tying a tarp over the bed of the truck. It was going to be one hell of a drive over to Pensacola, Florida, twenty-six hours give or take, but I was going to break it up over a couple of days.

With one last look at my mother's house, I shot her a wave before climbing into the truck and backing out of the drive.

It took me two and a half days to make it to Pensacola, and the relief I felt as I crossed into Florida was enormous. I hadn't been back since I'd moved to Arizona, and God, had I missed it.

All too soon, I was pulling into the parking lot of the dorm that I was going to be living in for the year, and I couldn't help the grin that spread across my face. I was finally free.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a/n: Let me know what you thought! I'll see you all next Sunday!

**Author's Note:**

> Updates will be every Sunday.


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